Our little Sammy has just passed his 3-week birthday this week and we’re over the moon in love with him! He’s a great baby, super cute, and just has a way of grabbing your heart and drawing you in. We find ourselves staring at him, laughing at his funny little mannerisms and admiring his every move because we just know he’s brilliant!
How Can Newborns Have So Many Bodily Functions???
All that foofy crap aside, this little dude is a burping, pooping, peeing, spitting-up, booger machine! Seriously, things fly out of every orifice with absolutely no warning! It’s a steady stream of feeding, changing, cleaning and burping around here. Just when you think you’ve got him all settled in for a nap, half of the bottle that you just got done feeding him shoots out his mouth and nose all over the clean little outfit you just wrangled him into. Back to square one.
While we think that Sammy is a good baby, he cries. This is where you say, “of course he cries, he’s a baby!” right? Well, he cries for no particular reason sometimes and Matt and I being relatively logical adults have a hard time understanding this behavior. There must be a reason, right? Diaper changed, bottle empty, burps up and out, nothing pinching or poking him, and he cries. Such a sweet little face goes instantaneously from sheer contentment and calm to scrunched up red pre-scream and that’s when we start searching for answers. Is he bored? Is he STILL hungry? Did he have a bad daydream? Is he pissed because he doesn’t like the giggling monkeys on the front of his onesie?
Even though we’re only a few weeks in to this journey, we’ve already learned some good tricks for dealing with these little aliens…in order to hopefully save you from a few sleepless nights or a little bit of stress, here’s some things that have worked for us:
– Feed, feed, feed. At this young age, you can go all out and feed them whenever they show the signs of being hungry. Even though we may think that they just couldn’t fit any more in, they probably can! Leaning in with an open mouth, sticking the tongue out and rooting around are all signs of hunger, but you know your baby and his/her signs.
– Change it up. Just when you think you’ve tried everything, take them to a different room, go outside, try a new holding position or throw some music on. They get bored just like we do, something new will stimulate them.
– “The burp lock”. We’ve already found that when Sammy wakes up with a cry (or a scream more like it) then it often works to pick him up and burp him. Sometimes there’s a stubborn burp in there that’s leftover from sucking down the last bottle.
– Take a break. If you have somebody to relieve you, take advantage of it for a while. Go do something “normal” for a while and let the baby hang out with some willing soul while you recharge. Taking care of yourself is just as important as taking care of your baby!
– Move! When you were pregnant, you likely moved around a lot…babies like movement. Cradle them and swing them in your arms, do some squats, pace, dance, or whatever it is that you feel comfortable doing, but move! It’s good for you, too!
– Talk, sing, or hum to them. They’re learning their own voices and sounds and hearing your voice is comforting and calming. Sometimes even wailing back at them when they’re crying will change their perspective on the whole experience.
– Last, but probably most important, go be YOU! Be a couple, be a family! Get out and do the things that you and your spouse used to do before you got all pregnant and then started dealing with a little one. Go grab a drink, visit with friends, go to a park, etc. For example, Matt and I spend a lot of time visiting wineries and partaking in tasting…we’ve already packed Sammy up several times to visit tasting rooms. The key is packing a good diaper bag with plenty of clean clothes and diapers and a couple of bottles, and being flexible. If you have to cut and run because of a screamy baby, be prepared with an escape plan. One of us is always ready to grab him and step outside if needed.
It’s easy to get into a rut when you’re caring for a little on 24/7 and we tend to forget to try new things. Get your mind outside of the standard feed/change/burp/sleep cycle and remember that this is your journey; babies will adapt to your life if you give them the opportunity to do so. You can read all of the books and instruction manuals out there, but nothing will tell you how to love and care for your baby the way that your own parental instincts will, so trust yourself and enjoy every moment. The biggest lesson we’ve already learned is that time flies faster than we can ever imagine. Each stage is temporary and babies are growing and learning at break-neck speed so when things get difficult, take comfort in knowing that this too shall pass! Before we all know it we’ll be sending Sammy off to college!
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I agree with all of the advice although I am bad at doing something for me or us. I am forced to do things just for me by my partner. Since we moved closer to the beach, we share the responsibility of walking our dog. I do take advantage of being with our dog for at least 45 minutes to an hour a day. We would run through the check list like you both do and sometimes, our daughter just wanted to be held. She is almost two and after I do the check list, sometimes she still just wants to be held. I am still learning how to balance housework with Daniela. And sometimes if I have to vacuum and dad is out of the house, I put her in my baby sling and have her accompany me. Usually dad does the vacuuming, and I will watch the baby. (He is much better at housework than I am) She actually fell asleep in the sling not too long ago for the first time ever. Do what is best for both of you and the baby.
@LucyMFel Great comment Lucy, I’m Annie’s husband and I understand what you’re saying. Funny thing…I’m a better house cleaner too…and Annie would admit that too. Haha. Good times, and congrats!
@MatthewLiberty @LucyMFel Ummm…yes, Matt is better at house cleaning! Coincidence? I think not! 😉 Sounds like you’ve got a good thing going there, I’m jealous of the beach part! We’re about 30 minutes away from the closest beach and we’d love to be closer! Thanks for sharing…it’s awesome to hear your story!
You guys are rocking and rolling right along! Each new day will present new situations and you will both handle them as best you can! Sammy will be fine – they are much tougher cookies than you think. So continue on this new adventure and enjoy each moment, because sometimes kids cause life to happen at break-neck speed! Love you 3!
@HeatherBrowneDearborn You rock sis, thanks!
@HeatherBrowneDearborn Right on, Heather! Thank you!!!
My son will be four weeks old tomorrow, and I definitely know what you mean about the screaming for no apparent reason. It’s really caused a lot of stress for me. Sometimes I feel like a bad mother because I can’t soothe him. Also, when I hand him off to my fiance when I just can’t handle it anymore, I feel like a bad partner. Since he works all day and I’m a stay at home mom I feel like I should be giving HIM the break when he comes home instead of him giving ME the break.
One thing I do want to comment on about your article is the advice you give about feeding the baby any time he/she shows signs of hunger. At first we did this, thinking every cry our baby made meant he must be hungry. That lead to throwing up (through his nose and everything like you describe). We took him to the pediatrician and she told us he most likely had reflux (since it’s genetic and I had it as a baby). Also, we were overfeeding him because every time he threw up we tried to replace it, which lead to him throwing up again because he actually was full. What she recommended was adding cereal. Here’s the feeding routine we use, and it has DRAMATICALLY cut down on his screaming for food and the throwing up (he only threw up 5 times in two weeks with this feeding plan):
We make the bottle by making 3 ounces of formula. Then we add 2 tablespoons of rice cereal (in the baby food aisle). We feed him every three hours during the day whether he wants to sleep or not with his last feeding being at 11 p.m. (we go to bed late). Then during the night we only feed on demand when he wakes and wants it. As soon as he finishes the 3 ounces (no more or you can risk overfeeding him and he’ll just throw up!) plug in the pacifier to satisfy his sucking urge without him overfilling his belly. Also, we burp him every 1 to 1.5 ounces.
Hope this helps! If you want to know more about the feeding technique just email me: jeaninemoneal@aol.com
🙂
Great info Libby. I’m Annie’s husband and I know she’ll respond shortly to you but I wanted to say that in regards to your fiance and handing the baby off to him…I understand, for myself I take the baby anytime Annie needs a break. For the most part I can work from home and I know having a baby the entire day can be tiring…we all need breaks.
As for the feeding thing…we typically only feed him when he showing more than one “hungry sign”. On a couple of occasions he has spit up and it came out his nose as well but it hasn’t been an ongoing issue. It really is amazing the first month…no matter how much you read or research, and no matter who gives advice…each baby is different and it’s great that we can all come together in a place like this and have the conversations. You never know what tidbit of info will be helpful…thanks for the comment and congrats on your little man!!
Hi there! Thanks for all the great information…sounds like we’re on the same track! Sammy will feed almost indefinitely, so we try to keep track of how much he’s eating and not overfeed. Like Matt said, he’s spit up a few times so we’ve cut back a little on each feeding to see if he holds it all in. It’s such a fun and challenging time, right? Not knowing exactly what to do to take care of them can be hard, but sounds like you’re doing a great job! Keep in touch…we love the feedback!!!
@hmdearborn Thanks for the RT sister crazy lady #Parenting
@dabarlow Thanks for the RT’s Denise! Happy Monday to ya!! #Parenting
@dabarlow Thanks for that RT Denise!! #Parenting
Your cutie is surely packing on the pounds and ounces now that he s 3 weeks old! But when taking note of your little one s weight, stop yourself from comparing it to your BFF’s baby s weight, or your sister s baby s weight. That s because the most important measure of your baby s growth isn t how he stacks up to other babies, but rather how he stacks up to his own weight and height curve.
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